NBA DFS action on Friday, Feb. 12, locks at 7:00 p.m. EST with an enormous 11-game main slate on Yahoo, DraftKings and FanDuel. SuperDraft is going with a 7:30 p.m. tip-off for a nine-game slate. Before you lock in your lineups on Yahoo, DraftKings, FanDuel and SuperDraft, make sure to check out Awesemo’s daily fantasy basketball rankings and projections. Let’s dig into some daily fantasy basketball picks, including Russell Westbrook, Nikola Vucevic, Al Horford and more.
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Awesemo’s NBA DFS Picks: Building Blocks
Yahoo Play of the Day – Russell Westbrook: Washington Wizards vs. New York Knicks
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 50.75 | DraftKings: 53.52
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 41.4% | FanDuel 46.5% | DraftKings 31.9%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $40 | FanDuel $8,700 | DraftKings $9,000
Happy Russell Westbrook Day! Bradley Beal has been granted a night off in a bit of a role reversal, so this means the NBA scoring and usage leader will be cheering from the sidelines tonight. Over their last 10 games, the Knicks have the 13th-best defensive rating allowing 111.4 points per 100 possessions. They are also playing at the slowest pace in the league during this stretch, with just 94.7 possessions per 48 minutes. Do not let that dissuade you from rolling with Westbrook tonight in his first game without the Wizards’ best player.
Jerami Grant: Detroit Pistons at Boston Celtics
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 40.66 | DraftKings: 41.23
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 20.4% | FanDuel 11.5% | DraftKings 21%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $33 | FanDuel $8,200 | DraftKings $7,500
Last night Jerami Grant was incredibly disappointing in a matchup against the Pacers. But now the salary on Yahoo and DraftKings is particularly enticing for the clear lead option of the Pistons. The slightly elevated tag on FanDuel should keep his popularity in check, which is a bonus for a player generally producing 1.1 fantasy points per minute and playing north of 35 minutes in most games.
Nikola Vucevic: Orlando Magic at Golden State Warriors
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 53.18 | DraftKings: 55.2
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 29.8% | FanDuel 23.9% | DraftKings 26.1%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $45 | FanDuel $9,800 | DraftKings $9,400
Yes, this was a recommended play for Thursday, and while we had mixed results from what we were hoping for, Vucevic produced right in line with his season average of 45 fantasy points. Of course, we are in a similar situation today, with five key teammates questionable. The matchup against Sacramento is one that we want to continue targeting players against. Over their last 10 games, the Kings are allowing 110.4 points per 100 possessions. On the season they still have the worst defensive efficiency in the league, allowing 114.7 points per 100 possessions. They are also in the bottom third of the league in rebounding. Vucevic really stands out on Yahoo, and with all the likely value options waiting to be revealed tonight, we should have no issues rolling with him on any of the other DFS sites.
Good Value
Al Horford: Oklahoma City Thunder at Denver Nuggets
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Point Projections: Yahoo and FanDuel: 30.84 | DraftKings: 31.75
- Awesemo’s Preliminary Rostered Projections: Yahoo 3.2% | FanDuel 9.7% | DraftKings 4.8%
- DFS Salary: Yahoo $27 | FanDuel $6,200 | DraftKings $6,700
Once again the Thunder are going to be very short-handed tonight. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Theo Maledon and George Hill have already been ruled out, and they are the primary ball handlers. Isaiah Roby was a last-minute scratch on Wednesday without much fanfare, and we could be in a similar situation tonight. In their absence, Al Horford and Hamidou Diallo have become the main offensive facilitators.
Oklahoma City does not play again until Sunday, so we should see Horford with minutes in the mid-30s. Utilizing NBA WOWY, we can see that when Gilgeous-Alexander is off the court, Horford has the highest assist rate on the team at 27.6% and Diallo is at 20.6%, which is second among the healthy remaining options. In a bit of a surprise, Kenrich Williams has been initiating the offense recently when Diallo is off the court.
Risky Value
Today we are going to talk about risk from a different viewpoint than our typical approach. Tonight is shaping up with a very unique set of circumstances. There are three games tipping off at 10:00 p.m. that are loaded with fantasy goodness. They are also rife with uncertainty that will likely be unanswered until an hour or so before their late tip-offs. The risk here is that we do not plan ahead to take advantage of what could be some of the best value options on the night. Let’s look at each of these matchups from a high level.
Orlando Magic at Sacramento Kings
Seemingly everyone is questionable for the Magic. Al-Farouq Aminu has played one game this season while trying to come back from a knee injury. That game was on Tuesday in Portland, and he saw just under 5 minutes of action. Regardless of his status, he is not likely to be an impact tonight. Michael Carter-Williams has not played in five weeks after suffering a sprained foot. Even if he is cleared to return tonight, and as desperate as the Magic are for facilitators, I do not see him playing more than 20 minutes in a best-case scenario.
The options we want to leave flexibility for are going to be rookie Cole Anthony, who was held out of last night’s game with a sore shoulder, Evan Fournier, who has missed the last three games with back spasms, and recent acquisition Frank Mason III, who left last night’s game with a strained groin after just 4 minutes. If Anthony is cleared, I would expect him to play 30 minutes. Fournier should see his usual 26 to 28 with a chance for more, depending on how he feels and how short-handed the Magic are. Then Mason is the wildcard. If the chips fall to where he is a starter, I would expect 25 to 30 minutes. If he is active but coming off the bench, then it becomes a little more dicey.
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Memphis Grizzlies
Anthony Davis is the pivotal play here. If he is in, then this mutes our excitement for the Lakers. If he is out, that is more responsibility for LeBron James, and it should elevate Kyle Kuzma into the starting lineup. Plus, there will be a trickledown effect for players like Dennis Schroder and Montrezl Harrell. Davis’ absence also increases the appeal for Memphis players like Jonas Valanciunas, Kyle Anderson and Grayson Allen. All three of whom are reasonable options if Davis plays, but become exceptional options if Davis and his defense around the basket are unavailable.
Portland Trail Blazers vs. Cleveland Cavaliers
This game does not have any current unknown injury news, but it does give us two more teams in the player pool that will provide additional options, depending on what happens with the other two late matchups. This allows for more flexibility in leaving several roster spots open and utilizing the late-swap feature available on all the main DFS sites once we have more concrete news.
Yahoo Daily Fantasy Basketball Discount Dandies
- Dorian Finney-Smith: DAL vs. NOP – $10
- Dwayne Bacon: ORL at SAC – $10
- James Ennis III: ORL at SAC – $11
SuperDraft Daily Fantasy Basketball Picks
- Enes Kanter: POR vs. CLE – 1.65x multiplier
- Damian Lillard: POR vs. CLE – 1.30x multiplier
- Hamidou Diallo: OKC at DEN – 1.70x multiplier
Final Thoughts on the Friday, Feb. 12 NBA DFS Slate
Tonight will be very interesting, as we are unlikely to receive news about the status of Anthony Davis and half of the Orlando Magic, who are playing in 10:00 p.m. EST games. This means that there could be news coming out well after lock. We will want to be near our computers or mobile devices in order to properly react. Keep in mind that salaries and scoring formats differ across the various fantasy sites, and a slam-dunk play on Yahoo may be a below-average NBA DFS pick on DraftKings or FanDuel.
